The Jatiya Sangsad yesterday passed an amendment bill raising jail term for disrupting law and order to maximum seven years from five years under speedy trial, reports UNB. Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan placed the bill titled 'The Law and Order Disruption Offence (Speedy Trial) (Amendment) Bill, 2018' in the House which was passed by voice vote.

The original Law and Order Disruption Offense (Speedy Trial) Act was first framed in 2002 to ensure the trial of some offences disrupting the law-and-order situation like extortion, disrupting traffic movement, vandalism, tender manipulation, giving threats, mugging, terrorising people as well as vandalism of public property and immovable property.

According to the bill, anyone responsible for committing offence disrupting law and order will face minimum two years and maximum seven years of rigorous imprisonment along with fine.In the existing law, the punishment is minimum two years' imprisonment and

maximum five years. It added that the government will appoint a specially-empowered first class magistrate as the judge of this court.